HIIT: High-Intensity Interval Training. Sprint, recover, repeat.
SSC: Steady-State Cardio. Long slow distance.

Which is better for burning fat? (That’s all anyone cares about when these two are mentioned in a single post, really.)

How about “both and neither” for an unambiguous answer?

There are benefits to both HIIT and SSC. They both get you moving. They both involve your heart and lungs and muscles. They both challenge your body (though in different ways). They both require mind over matter.

HIIT takes less time; SSC won’t make you puke (usually). HIIT, you’ll likely be feeling for a few hours after; SSC, you can do again tomorrow. HIIT, you think bad thoughts about the person who told you to do it; SSC, you invite your friends for a trail run.

There are proponents and opponents for both HIIT and SSC, and you can find lots of debates around the internet, with some claiming one is superior to the other, an “either/or” approach. There are studies that seem to back up one or the other. I prefer a “both/and”. Both HIIT and SSC have their place.

Which helps you lose fat/weight better? Both. In different ways, for different reasons, through different processes. But still, both.

We humans are made to move, and to move both fast and slow. Mix in both.